Tag Archives: media development

That’s what the folks at Internews, the World Bank and the Brookings Institute believe, and what they hope to convince funders of as well. In fact, according to Tara Susman-Pena and Mark Nelson, who spoke at the UN Digital Media Lounge today, a healthy, well developed media results in government transparency, civic participation, healthier economies, and citizen empowerment.

NOTE to Internews: I’d be very interested in learn how cross cultural perspectives on civic participation, civil society, public sphere, etc play a role in the development of media in non-Western societies. and whether (and how) that will be taken into consideration in your research.

Need further evidence that a healthy media is important? Nobel Prize winner Amartya Sen pointed out that in all the world’s history, there has never been a famine in a country/region which had a free press.

So these three orgs are working together on the Media Map Project – a research project examining media (as a system) throughout the world. It will examine:

Journalism (safety of journalists, quality of reporting, professional development)

Information Culture (media literacy of the public, whether the public uses the information they get from media, how/if media can make their own voices heard)

Evidence for the report will be found through data analysis (access, audience research, market data, etc), donor research (who is giving what, where and why, and what are the results, impact assessments) and case studies (Mali, DRC, Ukraine, Peru and Indonesia).

They also hope to have an accompanying web based tool that will give the public access to the data, make is searchable and with custom visualizations. The website is scheduled to launch on World Press Freedom Day, May 3, 2011.

As people from around the world meet in New York to discuss the goals and how to reach them, we can’t forget the importance of media.

Of all the 8 goals, on 6.3 makes any reference to knowledge (Proportion of population aged 15-24 years with comprehensive correct knowledge of HIV/AIDS). Media and communications certainly play a huge role in achieving this important indicator.

But media plays other, very vital roles in a region, especially in democratic systems. Disappointing news out of Mexico over the weekend highlights the need and importance of a free and developed media system.

Mexico is one of the world’s most dangerous places to be a journalist, and editors at El Diario de Juarez seem to have given up.

On Sunday’s front page of this prominent Mexican daily, is the headline, “What do you want from us?” The headline is directed at the regions active and deadly drug cartels, who have killed the second journalist from that newspaper in a s many years. El Diario is just the latest newspaper to bow to violent pressure from the cartels. Further evidence, according to some, that the Mexican government has no control.

According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, more than 30 journalists or members of the media have either been killed or have disappeared since December 2006. CPJ contributors Carlos Lauria and Mike O’Connor wrote a special report earlier this month. You can also see what its like to be a crime reporter in Juarez in this short video, Silence or Death (Spanish with English subtitles):